News

Workouts can be grueling to get in during our regular day to day schedules of work and family but in the summer it feels like getting a work out in is even harder! All the picnics, Bar-B-Cues, vacation plans, weekends to the shore, chilling by the lake, and entertaining kids off from school can make you yearn for the structure of the school year. Add in the environmental factors of increased heat and humidity that the dog days of summer bring, it is amazing people are able to continue to get their workouts in at all.

Here are a couple tips to help get you through the day and keep those workouts coming:

Plan It: People are able to stay more consistent when they plan their workouts into their today lists, daily planner, or calendars.

Grab a Friend: Participation increases when you workout with a buddy. It provides a greater commitment when someone else is relying on you to show up and provides a small boost of competitiveness.

Listen to Tunes: Don’t only grab the tunes that grab you but research has shown that if you choose songs with tempos 1-2 BPMs (beats per minute) greater than what you are used to listening too it will help increase your work rate and can turn your pain, breathlessness, and inner voice screaming stop into a positive experience.

Wake up and go: One of the more common traits between the most successful CEOs in the country is to get a work out in before 8am. Not only do they say it helps set the tone of the day, it puts them first in their priorities before the stress of the day. Additionally, working out in the morning has the added benefit of being at one of the coolest and less humid times of the day.

Avoid the middle of the day: The sun is at its strongest between 10am to 2pm, making the middle of the day some of the hottest times to attempt a workout in! Working out in the mid day heat could increase your chance for dehydration, heat exhaustion, or even heat stroke, a medical emergency.

Wear sunscreen: We talked previously about the importance of sunscreen but wearing sunscreen during outdoor workouts will help prevent sun burn which can make even the easiest summer workout painful!

Try High Intensity Interval Training: HIITs are a great way to get a good outdoor workout

while minimizing the amount of time spent in the heat. HIITs are short duration high intensity workouts that typically range from 4- 5 minutes on the short end to 15 minutes on the long end that demand 80-90% effort. Here is more information on HIIT training.

Wear the right gear: Summer training clothes should be light, reflective, and made of a material that is breathable to wick sweat away from the body. If all you have is cotton then bring a few spares to change into as the more saturated with sweat cotton gets the less sweat is evaporated and the greater chance of overheating.

Hopefully, these tips will help keep your workouts going and get you to achieve your fitness goals throughout the summer!